SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 20-F/A
(Amendment No.1)
ANNUAL
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
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For the fiscal year |
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Commission File |
NEXUS TELOCATION SYSTEMS LIMITED
(Exact name of
Registrant as specified in its charter
and translation of Registrants name into English)
Israel
(Jurisdiction
of incorporation or organization)
1 Korazin Street,
Givatayim 53583 Israel
(Address of
principal executive offices)
Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: None
Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
Ordinary Shares, NIS 0.03 nominal value per share
(Title of Class)
Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None
Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuers classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report:
170,450,516
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days:
Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark which financial statements the registrant has elected to follow:
Item 17 o Item 18 x
This amendment to our annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004 is filed for the purpose of amending Item 10B of the original annual report to include additional corporate governance practices in which we are following home country practices in accordance with NASDAQ Marketplace Rule 4350(a)1.
Therefore, this Form 20-F/A consists of a cover page, this explanatory note, Item 10B (as amended), the signature page and the required certifications of our chief executive officer and the person serving in the capacity of our financial officer.
This amendment does not reflect events occurring after the filing of the original Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004, and should not be viewed as updating any information contained therein. Except as described above, no change has been made to our annual report on Form 20-F filed on June 30, 2004.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
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MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION |
Our registration number at the Israeli registrar of companies is 52-004147-6.
Articles of Association; Israeli Companies Law
Articles of Association
September 2003, we adopted a new Articles of Association in order to comply with the new Israeli Companies Law. The provisions of our new Articles are substantially the same as the material provisions of our previous Articles.
The objective of our company as stated in our Articles and in our Memorandum of Association is to engage in any lawful activity.
We have currently outstanding only one class of securities. Pursuant to a one-for-three reverse stock split of our ordinary shares, effective as of April 2001, each three shares of our old Ordinary Shares with a par value of NIS 0.01 each were converted into one Ordinary Share with a par value of NIS 0.03 per share. Accordingly, all shares and per share data in this annual report have been retroactively adjusted to reflect the reverse stock split. No preferred shares are currently authorized.
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Holders of Ordinary Shares have one vote per share, and are entitled to participate equally in the payment of dividends and share distributions and, in the event of our liquidation, in the distribution of assets after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors. Our Articles may be amended by a resolution carried at a General Meeting by 75% of those who voted is required. The shareholders rights may not be modified in any other way unless otherwise expressly provided in the terms of issuance of the shares.
Our Articles require that we hold our annual general meeting of shareholders each year no later than 15 months from the last annual meeting, at a time and place determined by the board of directors, upon at least 21 days prior notice to our shareholders. No business may be commenced until a quorum of two or more shareholders holding at least one-third of the voting rights are present in person or by proxy. Shareholders may vote in person or by proxy, and will be required to prove title to their shares as required by the Israeli Companies Law (the Companies Law) pursuant to procedures established by the board of directors. Resolutions regarding the following matters must be passed at a general meeting of shareholders:
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amendments to our Articles (other than modifications of shareholders rights as mentioned above); |
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appointment or termination of our auditors; |
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appointment and dismissal of directors; |
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approval of acts and transactions requiring general meeting approval under the Israeli Companies Law; |
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increase or reduction of our authorized share capital [or the rights of shareholders or a class of shareholders] Sections 286 and 287 of the Israeli Companies Law |
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any merger as provided in section 320 of the Israeli Companies Law; and |
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the exercise of the board of directors powers by a general meeting, if the board of directors is unable to exercise its powers and the exercise of any of its powers is vital for our proper management, as provided in section 52(a) of the Israeli Companies Law. |
A special meeting of our shareholders shall be convened by the board, at the request of any two directors or one quarter of the officiating directors, or by request of one or more shareholders holding at least 5% of our issued share capital and 1% of the voting rights, or by request of one or more shareholders holding at least 5% of the voting rights. Shareholders requesting a special meeting must submit their proposed resolution with their request. Within 21 days of receipt of the request, the board must convene a special meeting and send out notices setting forth the date, time and place of the meeting. Such notice must be given at least 21 days, but not more than 35 days, prior to the special meeting.
The Israeli Companies Law
The Israeli Companies Law, as amended most recently in March 2005, codifies the fiduciary duties that office holders, including directors and executive officers, owe to a company. An office holder, is defined in the Israeli Companies Law, as a (i) director, (ii) general manager, (iii) chief business manager, (iv) deputy general manager, (v) vice general manager, (vi) another manager directly subordinate to the managing director or (vii) any other person assuming the responsibilities of any of the forgoing positions without regard to such persons title.
The Israeli Companies Law requires that an office holder of a company promptly disclose any personal interest that he or she may have and all related material information known to him or her, in connection with any existing or proposed transaction by the company. In addition, if the transaction is an extraordinary transaction, as defined under Israeli law, the office holder must also disclose any personal interest held by the office holders spouse, siblings, parents, grandparents, descendants, spouses descendants and the spouses of any of the foregoing, or by any corporation in which the office holder is a 5% or greater shareholder, holder of 5% or more of the voting power, director or general manager or in which he or she has the right to appoint at least one director or the general manager. An extraordinary transaction is defined as a transaction not in the ordinary course of business, not on market terms, or that is likely to have a material impact on the companys profitability, assets or liabilities.
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In the case of a transaction that is not an extraordinary transaction, after the office holder complies with the above disclosure requirement, only board approval is required unless the Articles of Association of the company provide otherwise. The transaction must not be adverse to the companys interest. If the transaction is an extraordinary transaction, then, in addition to any approval required by the Articles of Association, it must also be approved by the audit committee and by the board of directors, and, under specified circumstances, by a meeting of the shareholders.
Subject to certain exceptions provided for in the regulations to the Israeli Companies Law, agreements regarding directors terms of employment require the approval of the board of directors and the audit committee. In all matters in which a director has a personal interest, including matters of his/her terms of employment, he/she shall not be permitted to vote on the matter or be present in the meeting in which the matter is considered. However, should a majority of the audit committee or of the board of directors have a personal interest in the matter, then:
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(a) all of the directors are permitted to vote on the matter and attend the meeting in which the matter is considered; and |
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(b) |
the matter requires approval of the shareholders at a general meeting. |
According to the Israeli Companies Law, the disclosure requirements discussed above also apply to a controlling shareholder of a public company. Such requirements also apply to certain shareholders of a public company, with respect to private placements that will increase their relative holdings in the company. In general, extraordinary transactions with a controlling shareholder or in which a controlling shareholder has a personal interest, and agreements relating to employment and compensation terms of a controlling shareholder require the approval of the audit committee, the board of directors and the shareholders of the company. The term controlling shareholder is defined as a shareholder who has the ability to direct the activities of a company, other than if this power derives solely from the shareholders position on the board of directors or any other position with the company. The definition also includes shareholders that hold 25% or more of the voting rights if no other shareholder owns more than 50% of the voting rights in the company.
The shareholder approval must either include at least one-third of the shares held by disinterested shareholders who actively participate in the voting process (without taking abstaining votes into account), or, alternatively, the total shareholdings of the disinterested shareholders who vote against the transaction must not represent more than one percent of the voting rights in the company.
Private placements in a public company require approval by a companys board of directors and shareholders in the following cases:
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(a) |
A private placement that meets all of the following conditions: |
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(i) the private placement will increase the relative holdings of a shareholder that holds five percent or more of the companys outstanding share capital, assuming the exercise of all of the securities convertible into shares held by that person, or that will cause any person to become, as a result of the issuance, a holder of more than five percent of the companys outstanding share capital. |
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(ii) 20 percent or more of the voting rights in the company prior to such issuance are being offered. |
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(iii) all or part of the consideration for the offering is not cash or registered securities, or the private placement is not being offered at market terms. |
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(b) |
A private placement that results in anyone becoming a controlling shareholder of the public company. |
In addition, under the Israeli Companies Law, certain transactions or a series of transactions are considered to be one private placement.
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Any placement of securities that does not fit the above description may be issued at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
Under the Israeli Companies Law, a shareholder has a duty to act in good faith towards the company and other shareholders and refrain from abusing his power in the company, including, among other things, voting in the general meeting of shareholders on the following matters:
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any amendment to the Articles of Association; |
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an increase of the companys authorized share capital; |
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a merger; or |
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approval of interested party transactions that require shareholder approval. |
In addition, any controlling shareholder, any shareholder who knows that it possesses power to determine the outcome of a shareholder vote and any shareholder who has the power to appoint or prevent the appointment office holder in the company is under a duty to act with fairness towards the company. The breach of such duty is governed by Israeli contract law. The Israeli Companies Law does not describe the substance of this duty. The Israeli Companies Law requires that specified types of transactions, actions and arrangements be approved as provided for in a companys articles of association and in some circumstances by the audit committee, by the board of directors and by the shareholders. The vote required by the audit committee and the board of directors for approval of these matters, in each case, is a majority of the disinterested directors participating in a duly convened meeting.
Provisions Restricting Change in Control of Our Company
Tender Offer. A person wishing to acquire shares or any class of shares of a publicly traded Israeli company and who would as a result hold over 90% of the companys issued and outstanding share capital or of a class of shares which are listed, is required by the Companies Law to make a tender offer to all of the companys shareholders for the purchase of all of the issued and outstanding shares of the company. If the shareholders who do not respond to the offer hold less than 5% of the issued share capital of the company, all of the shares that the acquirer offered to purchase will be transferred to the acquirer by operation of law. The Companies Law provides for an exception regarding the threshold requirement for a shareholder that prior to and following February 2000 holds over 90% of a companys issued and outstanding share capital. However, the shareholders may petition the court to alter the consideration for the acquisition. If the dissenting shareholders hold more than 5% of the issued and outstanding share capital of the company, the acquirer may not acquire additional shares of the company from shareholders who accepted the tender offer if following such acquisition the acquirer would then own over 90% of the companys issued and outstanding share capital.
The Companies Law provides that an acquisition of shares of a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if as a result of the acquisition the purchaser would become a 25% or greater shareholder of the company. This rule does not apply if there is already another 25% shareholder of the company. Similarly, the Companies Law provides that an acquisition of shares in a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if as a result of the acquisition the purchaser would become a 45% or greater shareholder of the company, if there is no 45% or greater shareholder of the company.
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Merger. The Companies Law permits merger transactions if approved by each partys board of directors and the majority of each partys shares voted on the proposed merger at a shareholders meeting called on at least 21 days prior notice. Under the Companies Law, merger transactions may be approved by holders of a simple majority of our shares present, in person or by proxy, at a general meeting and voting on the transaction. In determining whether the required majority has approved the merger, if shares of a company are held by the other party to the merger, or by any person holding at least 25% of the outstanding voting shares or 25% of the means of appointing directors of the other party to the merger, then a vote against the merger by holders of the majority of the shares present and voting, excluding shares held by the other party or by such person, or anyone acting on behalf of either of them, is sufficient to reject the merger transaction. If the transaction would have been approved but for the exclusion of the votes of certain shareholders as provided above, a court may still approve the merger upon the request of holders of at least 25% of the voting rights of a company, if the court holds that the merger is fair and reasonable, taking into account the value of the parties to the merger and the consideration offered to the shareholders. Upon the request of a creditor of either party to the proposed merger, the court may delay or prevent the merger if it concludes that there exists a reasonable concern that, as a result of the merger, the surviving company will be unable to satisfy the obligations of any of the parties to the merger. In addition, a merger may not be executed unless at least 30 days have passed from the receipt of the shareholders approval and 50 days have passed from the time that a proposal for approval of the merger has been filed with the Israeli Registrar of Companies.
Nasdaq Marketplace Rules and Home Country Practices
In accordance with Israeli law and practice and subject to the exemption set forth in Rule 4350(a)(1) of the NASD Marketplace Rules, we follow the provisions of the Israeli Companies Law 1999, rather than the requirements of Rule 4350 of the Market Place Rules with respect to the following requirements:
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Distribution of annual and quarterly reports to shareholders Under Israeli law we are not required to distribute annual and quarterly reports directly to shareholders and the generally accepted business practice in Israel is not to distribute such reports to shareholders. We do however make our audited financial statements available to our shareholders prior to our annual general meeting and file our quarterly and annual financial results with the Securities Exchange Commission on Form 6-K. |
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Quorum Under Israeli law a company is entitled to determine in its articles of association the number of shareholders and percentage of holdings required for a quorum at a shareholders meeting. Our Articles of Association provide that a quorum of two or more shareholders holding at least 33.3% of the voting rights in person or by proxy is required for commencement of business at a general meeting. However, the quorum set forth in our Articles of Association with respect to an adjourned meeting, consists of two or more shareholders in person or by proxy. |
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Approval of Related Party Transactions All related party transactions are approved in accordance with the requirements and procedures for approval of interested party acts and transactions, set forth in sections 268 to 275 of the Israeli Companies Law-1999, and the Regulations promulgated thereunder. Provided that our executive officers do not serve on our board, Israeli law does not require nor do we engage in the recommendation to, or determination by, our board of the compensation of our executive officers. See also Item 10B Additional Information Memorandum and Articles of Association The Israeli Companies Law, for the definition and procedures for the approval of, related party transactions. |
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Shareholder Approval We seek shareholder approval for all corporate action requiring such approval, in accordance with the requirements of the Israeli Companies Law 1999. |
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Independence of Directors our board contains two independent directors in accordance with the provisions contained in Sections 239-249 of the Israeli Companies Law 1999. Israeli law does not require nor do our independent directors conduct, regularly scheduled meetings at which only they are present. |
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Nomination of our Directors With the exception of our independent directors, our directors are elected for terms of one year or until the following annual meeting, by a general meeting of our shareholders. The nominations for director which are presented to our shareholders are generally made by our directors but may be made by one or more of our shareholders holding together at least one percent of the voting power at the general meeting. Israeli law does not require the adoption of and our board has not adopted a formal written charter or board resolution addressing the nomination process and related matters. |
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Israeli law does not require and our board has not adopted a formal written audit committee charter. |
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Our audit committee complies with all of the requirements under Israeli law. |
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Israeli law does not require and we have not adopted a code of conduct applicable to all of our employees. |
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Mr. Gov Ben Ami and Ms Alicia Rotbard currently serve on our Board of Directors as External Directors. Ms. Alicia Rotbard, Mr. Gov Ben Ami and Mr. Ken Lalo currently serve on our Audit Committee.
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form 20-F and has duly caused this Amendment No. 1 to the Annual Report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Tel Aviv, State of Israel, on the 26th day of October, 2005.
NEXUS TELOCATION SYSTEMS LIMITED
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By: |
/s/ Yossi Ben Shalom |
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Yossi Ben Shalom |
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Chairman of the Board of Directors |
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